Annual Report 1997/98, Page 2 Microeconomic Workshops 39
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РОССИЙСКАЯ ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКАЯ ШКОЛА N E W E C O N O M I C S C H O O L ANNUAL REPORT 1997/98 Российская Федерация,117418 Москва, Нахимовский проспект 47. Suite 1721, Nakhimovskii Prospekt 47., 117418 Moscow, Russian Federation. ? tel(7)(095) 129-3844 or 129-3722 ? fax(7)(095)129-3722 E-mail [email protected] INTRODUCTION 4 ACADEMIC PROGRAM 6 Overview 6 Course Offerings in Academic Year 1997-98 6 Faculty 12 Public Seminar 18 THE STUDENTS 19 Current students: Profile 19 Applicant Profile 22 RESEARCH 23 Research Center 23 Research Projects for 1997-98 23 Research Projects for 1998-99 23 Conferences 25 GRADUATES AND ALUMNI 31 Graduates for the Academic Year 1997/98 31 Employment and/or Academic Placement of Alumni 31 Alumni Association 35 Study Abroad program 35 COOPERATION WITH OTHER INSTITUTIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS 38 Gory State Institute of Humanities and Economics, Georgia 38 SITE, Stockholm/Russian European Centre for Economic Policy (RECEP) 38 Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium) 38 The Institute for Advanced Studies, Hebrew University 38 OUTREACH 39 Open Society Institute Megaproject 39 NES Annual Report 1997/98, Page 2 Microeconomic Workshops 39 FACILITIES 41 Library 41 Computer Resources 41 FINANCES 43 Major Funders: Soros (HESP), Eurasia McArthur and Ford Foundations 43 Russian financing sources 43 Friends of NES 44 GOVERNANCE 45 The International Advisory Board (IAB) 45 The Rectorate 45 Academic Committee 46 Admissions Committee 46 Financial Committees 46 Governance of the Research Center 46 APPENDIX A: THESIS ABSTRACTS 48 APPENDIX B: NES DIRECTORY 59 NES Annual Report 1997/98, Page 3 INTRODUCTION The graduation ceremony held in July of this year marked the completion of the first six years of the New Economic School’s (NES) operation. This was its fifth graduating class - a class that brought to 175 a very valuable human resource for Russia. This group understands market economics in a way that is new for students who have completed their studies without leaving Russia. They have had the benefit of lectures from professors from the best Western Economics Departments in the world and some of the best Russian professors; they have had the opportunity to undertake research meaningful to Russia in collaborative projects with inputs from both western and Russian academic supervisors; they have had access to a library rich in current international economic journals and the latest economics textbooks; they have had unlimited access to computer resources including internet; and they have been nurtured and given the opportunity to complete their education abroad. These are special people who are about to make a difference to the Russian economy. Half of them are already working as economists and teachers of economics in Moscow, contributing to the emerging market economy in Russia in a variety of ways in both the public and private sectors. Although the number is still small when the vast need is considered, this modest number actually makes up the majority of highly trained professionals in modern economics in Russia. In Moscow, for example, NES graduates are now making a difference in the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank, the Monetary Policy Commission and the Center for Economic Reform as well as national and multinational research and policy organizations. It has now become customary for leading economic organizations in Moscow to come to the School to interview students even before their graduation. Another 72 NES graduates (11 from the 1998 graduating class) are now pursuing Ph.D studies in universities in US, Europe and Australia in some of the best economics departments in the world; among them, Harvard, MIT, Chicago, Yale, Northwestern, Berkeley, Cambridge and London School of Economics to name but a few. This is the group who will realise NES’s major goal: to help create self-sustained, high level teaching and research in modern economics in Russia. With time, the achievement of this goal will ensure a permanent supply of professional economists. An important aspect of this goal is to increase the Russian teaching presence within NES and to create permanent teaching positions at the School. Presently most of the teachers at NES, both Russian and foreign, are employed on a temporary basis. The School, together with the International Advisory Board, is making preparations for the appointment of permanent academic positions. Appointments will be made on the recommendation of the Academic Appointment Committee. Candidates for tenured positions will be sought from among Russian scholars, alumni of NES (upon completion of their Ph.D. education abroad), and also non-Russian scholars. NES is especially keen to appoint full- time faculty members, who will then be able to devote most of their activity to the research, teaching and administrative requirements of the school. In the interests of ensuring that NES attracts the highest possible caliber of applicants to these permanent positions, the filling of tenured positions will be a long-term process. Much work has been done during the year in an effort to move NES to long term (five year) financing. To this end, NES’s five year strategic plan, together with the achievements of NES, was presented to a gathering of current and potential financial supporters of NES in New York on June 4. Representatives, and, in some cases heads, of Soros, Eurasia, MacArthur, Starr and CitiBank Foundations and the World Bank, and IMF were among those present. This meeting accepted NES’s need to move to long term financing. Long term supporters Soros and Eurasia Foundations promised their ongoing support. The World Bank, restating its interest in developing institutional capacity in economics policy and analysis in Russia, committed long term support as of July 1998. The MacArthur Foundation’s promise has already been translated into a grant. The Ford Foundation, which unfortunately was not able to be represented at the meeting, has subsequently, through its representative, Ann Stuart Hill, indicated its willingness to receive and discuss our request for a second, multi-year grant to support the NES Research Center. Similar approaches have been made in Moscow in the full knowledge that in the long run, financial support at home is a necessary condition and a leverage for support abroad. Chances are better this year and we are hopeful that both the Russian Government and the private sector, employers and NES Annual Report 1997/98, Page 4 beneficiaries of so many of our graduates will join in. A meeting with the chiefs of the Russian banking sector resulted in a small but immediate grant with promises of further financial support. Another important leverage is the ability of the school to partly finance itself. For this reason, the International Advisory Board of NES decided in its last meeting to institute a low tuition for non- fellowship students but to supplement it with a loan fund for those who cannot pay. These loans can be repaid following the completion of studies. Such a scheme should continue to ensure access for all talented students regardless of their financial status. The NES Research Center continues to thrive. The Center’s third year of operation showed a consolidation of the efforts begun in its first two years of operation. The quality of its research work has been recognized both by an increased willingness of partners to undertake joint collaborative work and also by the attraction of some external funds. Seven highly relevant research projects ran during the academic year. In this report you will find a list of abstracts of student research carried out within the framework of the Center’s operations. The value and depth of their research efforts is obvious. During the year, the work of the research Center was disseminated through two conferences. The year was marked by increasing cooperation with a number of European Institutions, the most active of which has been with Stockholm Institute of Transition Economies and East European Economies (Stockholm School of Economics). The University of Tilburg in the Netherlands continues to be a staunch and active partner. NES has been approached throughout the year by a number of European universities offering Ph.D programs to NES graduates. We have extended a helping hand where possible to economics schools setting up in this part of the world, and through its Outreach Program NES is contributing to the building and strengthening of economic departments within Russia. Workshops in Econometrics have been held for faculty at the St Petersburg, Ekaterinburg, and Voronesh Universities. This work, combined with the first of our graduates receiving their Ph.D.s and returning to Russia to take up positions in research centres and institutions of higher education means that NES is well on its way to the realization of its goal: the education of world-class economists to serve the growing needs of the region’s private and public sectors. NES Annual Report 1997/98, Page 5 ACADEMIC PROGRAM Overview The New Economic School is committed to providing a Master’s level course in economics of a standard equal to that provided in the best schools in western Europe or North America. Since few, if any, of its students have studied economics before enrolling, this means that the program consists of three components: it begins with intermediate level undergraduate courses in economics, mathematics, probability and statistics. These are intended to introduce students to the fundamental concepts of economic theory and to refresh their knowledge of the basic tools of economic analysis. Second, students are offered a rigorous course in graduate level economic theory and a range of elective courses (dealing with a variety of applied topics and the special problems involved in transition). These courses are comparable in content and standard to those offered in master’s courses in North American or west European universities.